President Obama Calls for
Universal Access to Preschool
Universal Access to Preschool
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Excerpt from the State of the Union Address
February 12, 2013 These initiatives in manufacturing, energy, infrastructure, housing - all these things will help entrepreneurs and small business owners expand and create new jobs. But none of it will matter unless we also equip our citizens with the skills and training to fill those jobs. And that has to start at the earliest possible age. You know, study after study shows that the sooner a child begins learning, the better he or she does down the road. But today, fewer than 3 in 10 four year-olds are enrolled in a high-quality preschool program. Most middle-class parents can't afford a few |
hundred bucks a week for private preschool. And for poor kids who need help the most, this lack of access to preschool education can shadow them for the rest of their lives. Tonight, I propose working with states to make high-quality preschool available to every child in America. That's something we've still to do. Every dollar we invest in high-quality early education can save more than seven dollars later on – by boosting graduation rates, reducing teen pregnancy, even reducing violent crime.
In states that make it a priority to educate our youngest children, like Georgia or Oklahoma, studies show students
grow up more likely to read and do math at grade level, graduate high school, hold a job, and form more stable families of their own. We know this works. So let's do what works, and make sure none of our children start the race of life already behind. Let's give our kids that chance."
In states that make it a priority to educate our youngest children, like Georgia or Oklahoma, studies show students
grow up more likely to read and do math at grade level, graduate high school, hold a job, and form more stable families of their own. We know this works. So let's do what works, and make sure none of our children start the race of life already behind. Let's give our kids that chance."
